"BEEP.... BEEP.... BEEP....".
A relentless alarm shatters my dreams, as I force myself out of my bed. 5.30 AM. We first got to bed at 2 AM, but I was trained as a robot to get up right away. I knew I didn't have too much time to waste. It was still pitch black, and freezing outside, but off I went! Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and I had barely 15 minutes to buy it and eat, before we had to clean our quarter. I tried eat as fast as possible, and I put the rest in my pockets. Then we began cleaning our quarter.
"The life of being a soldier, what a joy it is", I often thought sarcastically to myself. After a rigorous inspection by our superiors, we were informed to gather our stuff and get to the trucks. With the smell of burned motor oil in the frozen air we went off. I looked inside the truck at my platoon to find most of them trying to get just another 20 minutes of sleep in the half-open freezing back of the truck. A few others were eating the rest of their breakfast. Everybody was silent, and the sound of the truck engine deafened any other sounds. In that moment I looked out and saw the sun rise. It was beautiful, and I felt something that I never forgot again. I felt complete peace. I knew that soon enough we will go through hell with boring tasks, and tough disciplin. And I just felt happy, and at peace.
Some years later when I had finished army I found myself yet again in this situation. This time I was working sometimes in a factory at night. The shift started at 10 pm and ended at 7 am for 3 days straight. I wanted to do these shifts because it would mean 2 days off, though working at night was tough, boring, cold, and very long hours. I remember one moment, the second day, after about 7 hours of work, and still 2 more to go, I felt this peace again as I saw the first strokes of the morning light.
To me peace arrives from acceptance of the situation.
I do not necessarily believe peace is good or bad, just as I do not believe war is good or bad. In the right circumstances, both are beneficial (mind you I do not speak about war as in conquest of material values, but war as in fighting for your values, feeling frustration about the status quo).
You need pain for your motivation, because it gives you a cause, a purpose. You need pleasure for your achievement, because it offers you relaxation, reflection, and further motivation. Feeling at peace doesn't come without mental sacrifice, without hard work. It doesn't matter whether you believe in what you are doing or not, hard work will be replaced with a feeling of joy.
That is why I say; feeling at peace should be the result of your dedicated, hard work. Work hard for your genuine cause, and you will feel at peace, as well as achieve something greater. The feeling of joy and peace will stay.